fleas

You may be wondering, do I have fleas or bed bugs? Scanning Electron Micrograph of a Flea. So you think something is biting you but you’re not sure what? Many folks eventually find the culprit is fleas, rather than bed bugs. Myth: I don’t have pets so I can’t have fleas. Not true! Fleas can […]

The Ohio Department of Agriculture has asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for an emergency exemption to allow the use of the pesticide Propoxur in residences; more than a dozen additional states are supporting this request, The Columbus Dispatch reports. The pesticide is currently in use for crops, on flea/tick collars, and in commercial applications. […]

Some patrons of an upscale Chicago restaurant (Japonais, in the River North neighborhood) claim to have received what they think are insect bites during recent dining experiences. CBS 2 reports, [Customer Sharon] O’Brien filed a complaint about Japonais with the health department. She says after eating here last Friday, she awoke the next morning with […]

Thirty-eight residents of a Newark apartment building were hospitalized and all residents were evacuated from their 3-story, 6-family apartment building, after suffering from “light-headedness, sore throats, itchy, watery eyes and irritated skin,” according to this article from the Star-Ledger (via nj.com). The building has problems with bed bugs, mice, and fleas, and has been treated […]

This brief article from Women’s Health rather glosses over the difficulty of eradicating many bed bug infestations: . . . recent stats show that ticks and bedbugs have been ramping up their itty-bitty attacks. Luckily, it’s easier than you think to KO the little creeps. How easy is it to get rid of bed bugs? […]

I finally had a chance to listen to David Cain’s UK radio appearance last Friday via the BBC iPlayer interface (which requires a RealPlayer plugin; I’m on a Mac and I was able to listen; I am sure Windows users will have no trouble). Go to this link. Find “The Breakfast Show with JoAnne Good” […]

In light of the story from Ireland today, I wanted to check in on England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, and so I looked through the BBC’s coverage of bed bugs over the past year. On August 17th, 2006 the BBC reported that a residence for doctors and nurses in a hospital in Fermanagh, Northern […]